Abstract
A common and driving assumption in agricultural research is that the introduction of research trials, new practices and innovative technologies will result in technology adoption, and will subsequently generate benefits for farmers and other stakeholders. In Lao PDR, the potential benefits of introduced technologies have not been fully realised by beneficiaries. We report on an analysis of a survey of 735 smallholder farmers in Southern Lao PDR who were questioned about factors that influenced their decisions to adopt new technologies. In this study, we have constructed measures or states of adoption which identify key elements of an adoption decision-making nexus. Analysis was conducted to statistically group explanatory factors of adoption. The key explanatory factors represented attributes of the farmer, the factors considered when undertaking production decisions and elements of the agricultural value chain that present as opportunities or constraints. We describe the combination of farmer’s personal attributes, perceptions of the value chain, and the introduction of new technologies by external actors as an “agricultural research value chain”, where agricultural research activities intervene to derive greater benefits for local farmers. A generalised linear model, via Poisson (multiple) regression analysis on the identified explanatory factors, was applied to explore how they influence adoption measures and we found several significant relationships.
Highlights
A common and driving assumption in agricultural research is that the introduction of research trials, new practices and innovative technologies1 will result in technology adoption, and will subsequently generate benefits for farmers and other stakeholders (Cafer and Rikoon 2018)
In our research with smallholder rice farmers in Southern Lao People’s Democratic Republic (Lao PDR), we found that the agricultural research value chain has a unique set of factors that are likely to impact on the chances of achieving eventual benefits for those involved in the adoption of new technologies (Moglia et al 2018)
The research presented in this paper aims to illustrate our insights relevant to the agricultural research value chain, based on a survey of smallholder farmers in southern Lao PDR and associated statistical analysis, described in detail in a project report by Greenhalgh et al (2017)
Summary
A common and driving assumption in agricultural research is that the introduction of research trials, new practices and innovative technologies will result in technology adoption, and will subsequently generate benefits for farmers and other stakeholders (Cafer and Rikoon 2018). We denote this process as an inclusive agricultural research value chain, where agricultural research is aimed at providing valuable opportunities for local farmers. Often the rates of adoption have been disappointingly low and there has been a plethora of research dedicated to understanding adoption processes in varied agricultural contexts (Alcon et al 2014; Feder et al 1985; German et al 2006; Hailu et al 2014; Knowler and Bradshaw 2007; Pannell et al 2006; World Bank 2012)
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